Sundar: I think opinion is split on the Meshuggah. Some think its the best they've done and some don't as far as i can tell. No idea whatsoever on the Opeth, but I'd be surprised if people think it's their best. However they might still think it's better than any other metal album in 2008.

outside of I, obzen is probably my favourite meshuggah album to date. it's a perfect distillation of their sound - so focused and lean and sharp. I know it's got a bit of stick from the hardcore for being a bit simpler than their older stuff, but that criticism seems largely to be based on 'combustion' rather than the album as a whole (which does get pretty damn tricksy).

even so, 'combustion' is an incredible track. by no means the most wilfully difficult in their catalogue, but a totally storming, brutal metal tune that's still characteristically meshuggah.

all of the above surprises me somewhat, as I'm usually a proponent of 'the more insanely complex, the better'. but for me, they just nailed it on this one.

not too into opeth... as for meshuggah, they're one of my favorite bands but that's a little tricky for me to answer.

the way I see it, everything that they've done post-destroy erase improve has been a gradual refinement of one kind of sound: rhythmic, down-tuned breakdowns in wacky time signatures with (almost) melodic, (almost) ambient guitar leads and a couple other elements re-jiggered throughout the course of an album.

all of their albums of the last few years strike me as samey but I don't mean this in a negative way. pretty sure I've posted this on another thread, but I listen to this band the way I would listen to autechre or basic channel records. the head-nodding repetition is a big draw for me.

but because of this, I have a hard time identifying a real standout. could be chaosphere, could be the i ep, could be obzen. I like them all, really.

watershed, on the other hand, is far from being opeth's best release. i still really like it, but tend to appreciate it from a distance rather than play it constantly. it really does stand alone as one of the more unique things they've put out and has some of the most vital riffs of the band's career.

I'll start posting the top 10 from around 2pm (ish) UK Time. So that some of the american ilxors can make comments as they go up. Probably post 1 per hour approx. Then Glenn will do his stuff.I'm looking forward to him matching and comparing to the P&J poll.

As I'll explain after we finish the countdown, I have scientifically determined a ranking of the Truest Metal Albums, which is obviously different from the Best Metal Albums. The top 5 Truest Metal Albums are all records that have already appeared lower on the countdown. Gojira's The Way of All Flesh is the 9th Truest Metal Album.

honest question, fwiw: as someone who really dug the last Mastodon album, liked the latest by Opeth, and pretty much can't abide by Neanderthal for more than five minutes at a time, what should i be checking out here?

the influences on there give a pretty good idea of where they're coming from (black sabbath, jethro tull, pentagram, etc.) but the flute and female vox are just enough so that they stand out from the crowd.